That too has been my experience.  I've called twice and almost immediately had a return call. I had one question that the person helping me couldn't answer, so he had me hold and found someone who could answer the question.  No "we'll get back to you" garbage.

I do think they care, and are horrified at what has transpired.  Their behavior from the first phone calls they received from pet owners were handled VERY promptly...and like I said before, they didn't drag this on for weeks with awaiting lab results, etc., leaving potentially poisoned products on store shelves and animals dropping dead all over the country.  They suspected, and they acted.  Recalls happen with human food as well. (Far too much IMHO)  What matters to me is how these companies handled this situation in the first minutes they suspected any problem. 

Too bad other companies have acted with such wreckless disregard for the safety and health of our pets.  It is simply appalling.  They're morally bankrupt (and hopefully, financially bankrupt too) I will not ever place trust in ANY company that acted like Menu Foods (and others) did...and anything from China, (food ingredients or otherwise) will never find its way into my home again.

I was just looking up NB recall info (or trying to, most of thier announcements are gone now) from last year and didn't see any references to these charges.  But I did find info that clarified what went on last year - their first recall was because of RPC they were adding but not listing it on the label (Diamond product).  The second recall, 11 days later, was ANI-produced food that was not supposed to have any RPC added.  So sounds like they have a mixed role in poisoning pets here - responsible on one hand, not on the other.

This Wikipedia article summarizes it well, and has lots of info on their current testing if anyone is interested (at least it sounds impressive) - both are at bottom of article:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_Balance_Pet_Foods

Here are some links to archived information.  I've only looked at the ones below.

The first one, you will have to copy and paste.  I can't get it all hightlighted..

http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com


http://web.archive.org/web/20070501173610/http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/

http://web.archive.org/web/20070908005140/www.naturalbalanceinc.com/faq_new.html

http://web.archive.org/web/20070830130927/www.naturalbalanceinc.com/vmi.html

We never heard where this really went, if anywhere, any more than we heard where another PFC's suit from one year plus went:

http://glendale.injuryboard.com/defective-and-dangerous-products/menu-food-sues-chemnutra-inc-due-to-tainted-pet-food-ingredient.aspx?googleid=217890

May 24, 2007 - 05:45 PM
Menu Food Sues ChemNutra Inc. Due to Tainted Pet Food Ingredient

"A lawsuit was filed on Monday by Menu food as a result of the tainted pet food ingredient that was supplied to them by ChemNutra, Inc. Menu Foods is now asking for damages substantially in excess of $75, 000. ChemNutra fired back the claim that Menu Foods waited weeks prior to advising them of potential problems. The pet food ingredient, wheat gluten, contained melamine, which is a toxic chemical used in plastics and pesticides.


"Referencing the Chinese, ChemNutra made the following claim "We are concerned that we may have been the victim of deliberate and mercenary contamination," In a game of pointing fingers everywhere but at themselves, ChemNutra, with respect to Menu Foods, went on to say "They didn't tell us or the public what they knew and when they knew it. "If Menu Foods had acted as a responsible corporate citizen, Menu Foods could have saved consumers - and pet owners, specifically - needless pain and suffering."

"Clearly, one of the many questions that must be addressed here is where does the responsibility of the exporter and the recipient of the imported products begin and end. It has long been known that the rules for importing many products are far from stringent. The European Union's rules are stricter in many areas, but their system also leaves much to be desired. At the end of the day, while all of the finger pointing goes on, real people are suffering greatly. Innocent animals have paid for this fiasco with their health and more animals than we know have died horrific deaths. Tragically, the recall continues to widen, and although many vets do not suggest home cooking for pets it seems like a viable solution at this point and time. The risk of contaminated pet food being ingested by our pets is just too high."